Read Online Body Double by Alane Hudson - Free Book Online Page B

what?”
    “Nothing. The notion is too crazy to consider.”
    Andrea’s heartbeat quickened. Was he thinking what she thought he was thinking? “What notion would that be?”
    He chewed slowly while he gazed deeply into her eyes. When at last his Adam’s apple bobbed and he washed his food down with a few gulps of water, he leaned forward. In a low voice, he said, “I was just thinking that if I mistook you for Sarah, so might everyone else, especially with a veil covering your face.”
    Her tongue felt like a rubber nub inside a cave of paper. “You can’t be serious,” she whispered, her voice failing her. Tell him. Tell him now.
    “You’re right. I’m not. It was the crazy notion of a desperate man. Forgive me for even bringing it up. I’m not usually prone to schemes. It’s just that... you could pass for her.”
    There was no better time to broach the subject of Sarah’s plan. Andrea took a deep breath. “I have a confession to make. Don’t be mad, okay?”
    “What confession?”
    “It’s no coincidence I’m here right now,” she said softly. “I’m a social worker. I met Sarah yesterday when I went to The Lighthouse to interview for a job.” She didn’t know him well enough to be able to tell whether he was bemused or angry. He knitted his brow but said nothing. “She came up with an idea remarkably similar to the one on the tip of your tongue, except that she was perfectly serious. She gave me limited power of attorney for a period of three weeks, authorizing me to act on her behalf as your fiancée, including the power to sign her name on your marriage license and take the vow to become your wife.”
    “That’s insane.”
    “That’s what I thought, but I have the papers to prove it.”
    “Show me.”
    Andrea dug into her purse for the envelope containing the legal documents she and Sarah had signed. He scanned them quickly and handed them back. “She’s paying you?”
    “A million dollars if I see it through. Our agreement states that I act as her proxy in the marriage until after the honeymoon. By then, the business deal between her father and your mother should be in the works.”
    “Wait. You’re saying Sarah’s willing to marry me after all?”
    Andrea nodded. “It’ll be her name on the marriage license. She’ll be your wife. I’m just her—”
    “Proxy. I get it, but why? Why would she send you instead of marrying me herself?”
    “For one thing, she had an opportunity to save a group of girls from becoming human trafficking victims.” Andrea described Sarah’s mission in Colombia and the time line that prevented her from both saving the girls and attending her wedding. “She needed to be in two places at once, and so she’s paying me to be her body double.”
    “Body double? Like in the movies?”
    “Exactly.”
    “And I don’t get a say in this?”
    “Of course you do. That’s why I’m not wearing Sarah’s ring. If you’re on board, we proceed with the wedding as planned, and I’ll stand in for Sarah. If you’re not, then you should postpone the wedding until she gets back.”
    He nodded slowly as if taking it all in. “I take it her father isn’t supposed to find out who’s under the veil.”
    “Right. Charlotte and Tracy know, and now you. That’s it. The marriage will be legitimate, so it’s not fraud.”
    Blake pursed his lips thoughtfully. “What’s the other thing?”
    “What?” she asked.
    “You said for one thing she’s going to Colombia to save some girls from becoming victims. What’s the other thing?”
    Andrea silently chastened herself for the blunder. “She entrusted me with confidential information. I can’t tell you.”
    He studied her for a moment. His eyes bore into her, and she felt suddenly like her feet were miles away from the rest of her body. “Are you saying that the reason for missing her own wedding is of no concern to her husband?”
    “When you put it that way, it sounds silly. You have to promise to keep